The Vermont watchman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1883-1911, 1887-01-19
The Moon Hoax.

The Moon Hoax.
The moon story, which appeared in
the fall of 1885 in the columns of the
New York Sun, was the most gigantic
newspaper hoax ever perpetrated. 1t
was known that Sir John Herschel had
gone to the Cape of Good Hope to
make observations with new instru-
ments of extraordinary power. Then
there appeared series of papers de-
scribing what Sir John had discovered.
They purported to be copied from the
pages of a supplement to the Edinburg
(Scotland) Journal Of Science. exclusive
copies of which had been received at the
Sun office. 1t was known that the at
mosphere of the Cape of Good Hope is
unequaled for purity, and, of course,
has corresponding facility of celestial
observation, and when it was stated
what nobody among us could under
take to deny, especially as it was said
to be confirmed by actual observation
that the great object-glass of the as
tronomer's chief telegraph was lens
of seven tons weight. no great wonder
was felt if the results from its use were
uneXampled. 1t was said, then, in the
alleged report of the "great discov-
cries." that so great was the magnify
ing power of this instrument forty-two
thousand times) that it could impart to
objects at the distance of the moon de-
gree of visibility equal to that enjoyed
by objects on our earth not more than
one hundred yards off. This put it
within Sir Johns power to view not
only the larger class of natural objects
in the moon, but to see with ease the
dwellings, animals, and even persons
of the Lunarians, which he accordingly
described. The descriptions of luna,
scenery were all believed. There was so
much verisimilitude, such shrewd and
apparently accurate scientific phraseol-
ogy, that scientists found it no easy
task why they should not give the story
credence. But when there came de-
scriptions of the web-wings appended
to the favorite inhabitants of our sat
elite, constituting them in appearance
sort of man-bat, strong skepticism
of the whole story was manifested.
Edgar Allan Poe, the poet, speaking of
the immense success of the moon
hoax" states that "not one person in
ten discredited it, and (strangest point
of alb the doubters were chiefly those
who doubted without being able TO say
why-the ignorant, those uniformed
in astronomy, people who would not
believe because the thing was so novel,
so entirely out of the usual way A
grave professor of mathematics in a
Virginia college told me seriously that
he had no doubt of the truth of the
whole affair! The hoax was circulated
to an immense extent; was translated
into various languages, and was. upon
the whole, decidedly the greatest hit in
the way of sensation ever made by any
similar fiction either in America OF
Europe The skeptics thought that
they would discover the truth or fiction
of the mysterious story by the effect il
would produce in Europe, but the
event was at first by no means so dis
tinct for them or so unfavCrable to the
credit of the story as might have been
supposed. 1t was read all over Europe
with as keen an interest as it had beer
here, and was made the subject of {
certain kind of discussion, even in tht
French Academy of Sciences, wher
the great Arago at length took it upor
himself-chiehy, as he said, out of re
spect to the name and honor of hi'
friend, Herschel-to put an eXtinguishel
upon it. Herschel himself was frs
made acquainted with the liberty tina
had been taken with his name by iii
being sent him amongst a bundle o
miscellaneous New York newspapers
obligingly furnished him by Calet
Weeks, who had gone out from the
United States to the Cape for lot O
giraffes and other African animals fol
his menagerie. He saw Immediately
of course, the nature of the thing
treating it -naturedly. james
Gordon Bennett of the New York Her
aid was the first to charge the Sun witt
the fabrication of a hoax, and the in
ventor of the story, who was the edito
of the paper, had to be very adroit il
dealing with the situation in such
manner as to conduct the concentrate
indignation and disappointment of tn
public safely away. True or false,
wonderfully increased the circulation
of the san, but Mr.. Richard Adam
Locke, an Englishman, who was tn
author of the hoax, never wrote any
thing afterwards which created muc
sensation 1t took long time to con
vince the public that it had been de
ceived, and it was said that some spin
sters at Springfield, Mass, took tn
story in such good earnest that the
commenced the establishment of mis-
sionary society for the conversion G
the Lunarians.- Exchange.